Employees working from home during the coronavirus pandemic claimed some outlandish expenses this year, including pricey exercise bikes, facelifts and private jets.
Emburse, an expense management software company, released a compilation Wednesday of some of the craziest expenses it has seen claimed this year, some of which were actually approved. That included $1,895, which was approved as a contribution for an employee's Peloton Bike under the explanation of “for health and wellness.” On the other hand, a $7,600 expense claim for a facelift was submitted under the category of “repairs and maintenance” but was rejected, despite the pressing need to look one’s best during a Zoom meeting.
Tracy Vrchota is the vice president of compliance at Accurate Background.
Ken Van Leeuwen founded Van Leeuwen & Company in 1997. As the firm's managing director, founder and financial advisor, he is responsible for the overall strategic direction of the firm as well as serving his clients, who include corporate executives, nonprofit organizations and foreign citizens who have made the U.S. their home.
Steph Tulley is the founder and CEO of Actuology. Tulley propels sustainability and success through: innovative economic strategy, dynamic consumer knowledge, and deep industry insight. Actuology's high-paced leader builds technology to augment human interaction, and future-proof the success of her industry.A New Yorker by birth and a quasi-Nomad by nature. When she is not working, Tulley has an adventurous streak. She has been known to spend countless hours playing in the field of natural history, and extreme wildlife photography.
Some expenses weren’t for working from home, but more about getting out of the house safely. An expense claim for a private jet charter costing over $20,000 was submitted and approved under the explanation of “required to limit COVID exposure for international shoots.” Another travel-related expense claim was $2,500 for a helicopter ride, which was not approved.
The $79 expense claim for a dog crate could perhaps be used for travel at some point when that's safer, but in these times it was more plausibly to provide "crate training [for] a new COVID puppy to not run into Zoom meetings."
Below is an infographic produced by Emburse showing this and several other head-scratching claims:
